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SS-23 (Spider) / 9K714 Oka

1979 COLD WAR MODERN

SS-23 (Spider) / 9K714 Oka Story

The OTR-23 "Oka" (9K714) (NATO codename SS-23 "Spider") is a long-range mobile tactical ballistic missile developed by the Soviet Union in the late Cold War. Mobility is derived from the wheeled 8x8 truck chassis used to transport large single-stage solid-fuel rockets capable of carrying conventional or nuclear warhead charges.

The system was put into production at the Votkinsk Machine-Building Plant from 1979 to 1987 and was adopted by the armed forces of Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Ukraine and the USSR during its service. Ukraine and the Soviet Union are today (2017) the remaining active users of the missile system.

The OTR-23 was developed to replace the aging SS-1 "Scud" battlefield missile delivery systems, which proved very popular with Third World armies during the 1991 Gulf War and suffered severe damage in Iraqi hands threaten. Since the threat of nuclear war remains an important part of Cold War operations/responses, the OTR-23 is endowed with an inherent nuclear delivery capability. The system has improved range and firepower compared to the outgoing Scud series, and will be used as a "first strike" component against key NATO targets and infrastructure if required.

The mobility of the OTR-23 vehicle allows it to be repositioned at short notice, making it a difficult target for NATO airborne forces to locate and destroy. It only takes five minutes to prepare the OTR-23 system for launch.

Three different missile variants were produced, named "9M714B", "9M714F" and "9M714K". The B-type missile is a nuclear weapon type with a range of up to 500 kilometers. The F-type missile is a standard FRAGmentation, high-explosive (FRAG-HE) type with a range of up to 450 km.

K-type missiles carry submunitions for hitting "soft targets" and have a range of up to 300 kilometers.

A separate OTR-23 system consists of the launch vehicle itself, as well as an ammunition vehicle that carries a single missile for reloading, and a supply vehicle for loading the missile onto the launcher.

With the end of the Cold War in 1991, part of the Soviet Union's portfolio of OTR-23 systems fell into the hands of the newly created state, although for obvious reasons the nuclear capabilities were not transferred. During the thawing of US-Soviet relations, the OTR-23 series was included in the disarmament phase by then Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev.